Transistor

Perhaps the principal contribution of transistors has been the feasibility of highly complex yet miniature electronic equipment; they have made it possible to hold more electronics in one's hand than could be contained in a large building in the days when vacuum tubes were the only active devices available. This in turn has made it possible to pack complex functionality into packages of manageable size—computers, cell phones, automobile engine controllers, and a host of other tools. Transistors continue to be intensively researched around the world, for decreasing the size and power consumption of the individual transistor on a chip offers immediate profits. Researchers have already demonstrated, in the laboratory, extremely small transistors made out of only a few molecules—even a transistor employing only a single electron. They have also demonstrated the practicality of transistors made out of plastic, which could be even cheaper and more shock-resistant than conventional devices. However, it may be years before such exotic developments see commercial application. In the near future, increasing transistor densities on chips (which are greatly desired by manufacturers) are likely to be achieved by improving fabrication techniques for traditional semiconductor devices.